Someone notices that their house is on fire, but no other occupant realises because they’re all too wrapped up in their own affairs to give due care to their own welfare… so the one person who is most aware puts off escaping alone and remains with the group in order to lead each person to safety. Enter the bodhisattva.
The meaning of this parable, as described on the Wikipedia page on the subject of the bodhisattva is as follows:
‘In Mahāyāna Buddhism life in this world is compared to people living in a house that is on fire. People take this world as reality pursuing worldly projects and pleasures without realizing that the house is on fire and will soon burn down (due to the inevitability of death). A bodhisattva is one who has a determination to free sentient beings from samsara and its cycle of death, rebirth and suffering…’
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhisattva
Many Buddhists believe that some bodhisattvas renounce the opportunity to live permanently in the heavenly realm, until the last soul in the physical realm has first achieved enlightenment and is therefore also able to become free of this world of suffering. I suppose you could liken the ideal of the bodhisattva to that of a captain of a sinking ship, who genuinely cares for the welfare of his passengers and who therefore refrains from entering a lifeboat himself until all the children, women, men and animals on board have first been guaranteed their safety. The bodhisattva-captain puts the welfare of others above his own needs, out of a deep sense of compassion for them, and due to his desire to help end their suffering.
The Bodhisattva: An Ideal?
Every now and again I wonder whether any souls have ever really put off the opportunity of living heavenly lives of complete well-being, at the expense of reincarnating into this world of mixed pain and pleasure, good and bad, happiness and sadness until the very last soul regains its freedom from the delusions that cause it to remain trapped within the cycle of reincarnation. I like to think, despite my faults, that on the whole I’m a reasonably nice person (don’t we all?) and that in my own way I help to make the world a little bit better, due to my actions, so that when my time comes to return Home the world will be, to some degree (perhaps quite small) better for my having been here than had I not. But you know what, much as I’d like to kid myself to believe that I’m so spiritually evolved that I could take on the challenge of becoming a true bodhisattva, in truth I doubt that I would actually see such a task through to completion. The challenge seems infinite, unending, impossible. Would I ever really renounce the opportunity to cease reincarnating into this crazy mixed-up world, to remain instead in the heavenly realm, the realm of Perfect Love? Or, is Perfect Love manifested in the person of the bodhisattva? It’s a real conundrum and a difficult question to navigate in order to arrive at a full and complete conclusion.
Wishfully I’d like to believe that I could be amongst those souls who’d seek to help all other souls to freedom, but realistically though I intuit that I might become weary of such a never-ending task. I’m aware of my limitations, and I know that I’d need to see at least some hint of measurable success occurring, in order to maintain my determination in the face of such a mammoth task. But then perhaps I’m looking at this from a human perspective?
Perhaps the idea of the bodhisattva is an ideal, rather than a reality? Perhaps the idea of the bodhisattva is a means to encourage those so motivated to pursue spiritual development to also seek, in the process, to develop compassion for all sentient beings and to therefore desire to improve their lot, with whatever well-intentioned means are available over several (even many?) lifetimes, but not necessarily ad infinitum, as, perhaps to aspire to do so is to make oneself take on a responsibility that ultimately only God can fulfil?
Bodhisattvas For A Lifetime…
Whether or not there exist any true bodhisattva souls, patiently reincarnating in order to share knowledge of love, compassion and of the reality of another Truer realm, to which we can all aspire to enter, once and for all, by leaving this mixed (and mixed up) world of good and bad behind, I think if all truly spiritual people at the very least aspired to be bodhisattvas for a lifetime, so to speak, to seek to spread the message of compassion to all awakening souls who are both ready to hear it and prepared to respond, by making changes in the way they live, so that they no longer habitually contribute to the suffering that occurs in this world, but rather diminish it… then we might together either, at the very least, create a ‘Heaven on Earth’, or even reach that fabled moment when all souls will become free of the pull to incarnation and finally enter the heavenly realm of Pure Love. Either way, this world would clearly be a much better place if you and I and others too, lived with mindful compassion towards other living souls. If everyone committed to being a bodhisattva, for at least one lifetime, this lifetime, think how quickly we could change things for the better. All it takes is a decision to make a simple commitment to live with compassion towards all other living souls.
Aiming For An Ideal…
I guess the thought of making a vow to renounce salvation until the last soul is saved is the kind of vow that might put many (perhaps most, myself included) off of attempting such a gargantuan task? What’s more, I’m not particularly a fan of making vows, as what might seem ‘right’ at the time of the vow, from a position of limited understanding could, at a later date, seem wholly unwise, given the availability of more facts, particularly when such a vow might have consequences over several (perhaps hundreds, or thousands of) lifetimes. However, aiming for an ideal… well that’s an entirely different situation. I’m quite happy to aspire to an ideal, knowing that there will surely be moments when I’ll fall short of the mark, whilst recognising too that that’s okay (which is an act of compassion towards myself). This idea inspires me, because I understand that in spite of my limited ability, overall, I can live according to the bodhisattva principle – by the simple action of incorporating acts of compassion in my day to day affairs.
The Next Step Is Love…
Elvis once sang a song called: The Next Step Is Love, which I think is an apt phrase to consider at this stage of our journey together. You see, compassion can best be summed up as having love for others. If you’re willing to become a ‘bodhisattva for a lifetime’, it’s clear that the next step to take is… Love. The next step is a step which begins a journey of lifelong commitment to living with love, which act is evidenced by extending compassion towards all other living souls so that, at the very least together, you and I might help to make this world a better place than it would have been, were it not for us. And perhaps we might also play some small part in enabling other souls to awaken too, to achieve enlightenment: gnosis. When large numbers of people begin to live like this, the world will quickly become a kinder, nicer place.
This message isn’t for the hard of heart. It can only be understood by awakened souls. Are you prepared to seek to become a ‘bodhisattva for a lifetime’? It’s not difficult. It doesn’t mean trying to become ‘perfect’ (with all of the problems that that approach to life can cause), it simply means seeking to exemplify, as best we each can, compassion in our lives, in the form of the benevolent lifestyles we each choose to live and in the ways we treat others, thereby manifesting the essence of Heaven here on Earth: which is the energy of Love.
We can each choose to step forward in the energy of Love, or instead live the ‘way of this world’, which, on the whole, directly, or indirectly follows a path that causes suffering. When many people live selfishly, ultimately everyone suffers.
In becoming a ‘bodhisattva for a lifetime’ I can’t promise you a life devoid of problems, because unfortunately we’re all still subject to the results of the actions of others, to one degree or another, but I do believe that deep inside you’ll begin to develop a sense of living a life that’s in harmony with the ideal of the Spirit Realm, which is Love. What’s more, you’ll enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing that you’re helping to set the kind of example that might inspire others to follow your lead, thereby motivating yet more souls to begin to walk in the direction of Love too, which act ultimately leads to eternal life in a realm of Pure Love.
What better legacy can you share with the world?
Twenty Five Bodhisattvas Descending From Heaven: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Twenty-Five_Bodhisattvas_Descending_from_Heaven,_c._1300.jpg
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